This invention relates to a terminal retainer for an electrical connector used to interconnect wire harnesses or the like.
In FIG. 5, a first flexible retaining piece e for a metal terminal c is provided within a terminal receiving chamber d of a connector housing a. A second flexible retaining piece f for the metal terminal c is provided on a terminal retainer b.
In a provisional retaining condition as shown in FIG. 5, the terminal retainer b is connected beforehand to the connector housing a. In this condition, the metal terminal c is inserted into the terminal receiving chamber d through an insertion hole b2 of a main frame portion b1 of the terminal retainer b, so that a retaining projection e1 of the terminal retaining piece e is engaged in a retaining hole c1. Subsequently, the terminal retainer b is pushed so as to shift the retaining piece e1 to a complete retaining condition. As a result, a retaining end f1 of the flexible retaining piece f is engaged with a shoulder c2, thus preventing rearward withdrawal of the metal terminal c in two ways.
A stabilizer c3 for controlling the position of the terminal c during insertion thereof is formed so as to project from the lower side of the metal terminal c. At the time of insertion of the metal terminal c, the stabilizer c3 can become caught by the main frame portion b1, thus degrading the efficiency of the insertion operation.